Hermione waved goodbye to her parents as they walked in the other direction away from her. Her parents were going straight home while Hermione was going to the Weasley's. She had heard from Ron about Percy but was still a bit skeptical about his claims of coming from America. She grabbed her bags and started walking out of the airport, unaware that she was being watched by two Death Eaters.
"Wait until she's away from all these filthy Muggles." Avery whispered to Dolohov. The two of them swept away silently, keeping an eye on Hermione. She had walked into an alley where an old lantern was waiting for her. Portkey. Avery thought. Hermione was about to reach out for it when suddenly, her hand got hit by a jet of purple light. She cried out as she felt her hand burn with pain. She spun around and saw two hooded figures leering at her.
"Well, well, well... If it isn't the little Mudblood." Avery hissed. Hermione cringed away from them and reached for her wand. Dolohov shot another spell at her hand and she pulled away. Avery swooped closer and pinned her against the wall. He took her wand from her pocket and threw it behind her. "Not so brave without your precious Potter protecting you huh?" he leered. Hermione pushed him away and felt something wrapping around her ankles.
Ropes had sprung out of nowhere and were tying themselves around her. She desperately tried to wriggle out of it but the ropes were too tight. She fell over and watched as Avery stared down at her, clearly amused. That was the last thing she saw before a stunning spell hit her, knocking her unconscious.
Ron and Percy were sitting outside the Burrow, waiting for Hermione to show up. The tension between the two boys was so thick and neither said a word to each other. Percy didn't understand why Ron was so hostile to him but didn't want to ask. Ron, on the other hand, was angry at Percy for showing up and taking over Harry's usual role. He was angry that Percy got more attention from his family than him and blamed this whole Kronos thing on Percy as well. The only thing Ron was looking forward to was to see Hermione again.
Minutes passed and there was still no sign of Hermione. "What time did your dad say she was arriving?" Percy asked politely. Ron ignored him and stood up.
"DAD! WHAT TIME DID YOU SAY HERMIONE WOULD GET HERE?" he bellowed. Fred and George came out looking annoyed.
"Shut your mouth Ronnie." Fred said.
"She was supposed to be here at 6." George replied. Ron checked his watch.
"Its already 6: 10!" he exclaimed. Suddenly, there was a flash of bluish light. An old lantern appeared, but there was no Hermione holding onto it. Ron paled and ran towards the lantern.
"What's with the lantern?" Percy asked curiously. Ron turned around, his face red with anger.
"This is all your fault!" he shouted at Percy. Percy backed away slowly, confused and angry.
"How is this my fault?" Percy demanded. Ron's face was terrifying, and for a second, Percy thought he saw a flash of gold in them.
"If you hadn't shown up here in the first place, then Kronos wouldn't have to look for you! He could be the one who took Hermione and its your fault!" Ron said, pointing his wand at Percy's chest. Fred quickly disarmed Ron with a flick of his wand. Ron glared at him.
"I just knew you'd take his side. Everyone takes the famous Harry Potter's side all the time!" He yelled angrily. He faced Percy and attacked him, his fist connecting with Percy's nose. To everyone's shock, except Percy's, nothing happened. Ron howled in pain as his fist hit Percy's face without leaving a mark. Percy stood up and pushed Ron off him. Ron growled and ran at him, his face filled with fury. Percy was about to grab Ron's hand a twist it when Ginny interrupted.
"RON! WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU?" she screamed. She jumped between Percy and Ron, glaring at them both.
"He started it!" Percy shouted, pointing at Ron. The twins nodded in agreement. Ginny looked at Ron, her face troubled.
"Are you ok? Why are you always so angry?" she asked softly. Ron growled and pushed Ginny. She would've fallen backwards if Percy hadn't caught her. Fred and George grabbed Ron's arm and smacked him on the head.
"What the hell is wrong with you?" they demanded angrily. Percy gasped as he saw Ron's eyes flash golden again.
"Kronos! He has Ron under his control!" Ron snarled at him but Ginny quickly stunned him, her face shocked. They faced Percy.
"What?" she asked softly. Percy looked down at Ron, his face looking sad.
"His eyes turned gold just now. He's definitely under his control. Check his back or something, there could be a scythe mark on him." They flipped Ron over and pulled up his shirt. They all gasped as they saw his back.
A golden scythe was burned into his skin, glowing slightly.
Back at Camp Half-Blood, Annabeth was teaching Harry how to put on armour properly.
"Ok, so you wear it like this." Annabeth said, showing Harry how the straps fastened under the arms and on the sides. Harry nodded and clumsily tried to walk but ended up falling over.
"How do you wear something so heavy?" Harry groaned. Annabeth laughed and pulled him to his feet.
"Practice I guess." Just then, Chiron came up to them looking worried.
"I just received news from Argus. He was on his way back from patrol duties when he saw a whole army of people in cloaks blasting things to pieces. I've never seen anything like it, they were only holding wooden sticks yet they almost destroyed the city." Harry paled.
"Death Eaters. They know I'm here. This could only mean that Kronos and Voldemort are definitely working together." Annabeth looked troubled.
"We need to alert the campers. We need to protect Harry." Harry looked offended.
"I can take care of myself." he muttered. Chiron and Annabeth paid no attention and hurried off to warn the campers. Harry followed them, thinking only one thing: The fight has started.
Sorry for the short chapter! All the fighting should start in the next chapter so thats something to look forward to yes?